About Sutter County John Sutter’s Hock Farm, the first large scale agricultural entrprise in California, was located off Garden Highway south of Yuba City. In january, 2011, the Sutter County Historical Society completed the refurbishing of a memorial plaque--an entire wall of one of the original buildings, that was originally placed in the 1930s. About Sutter County Sutter County is one of California’s original Yuba City, the County seat, was founded in 27 counties. Agricultural and commercial 1849, and is the birthplace of John Joseph operations in Sutter County pre-date Montgomery (February 15, 1858), the first California’s entry into the United States. American to pilot an airplane, on August 28, While its borders have changed somewhat 1883, 20 years before Orville and Wilbur since its founding (Auburn was once the Wright. County seat), Sutter County’s chief economy remains agriculture and Geography conservation of agriculture remains a shared goal of its residents and its government. Located in the heart of the Sacramento Valley, Sutter County’s southern border is History Sacramento County. It is bordered on the southwest by Yolo County, the northwest by Sutter County is named after one of the Colusa County, on the north by Butte state’s more engaging and complex County, on the east by Yuba County, and on historical personalities, and an agricultural the southeast by Placer County. visionary. John Augustus Sutter, a German native born to Swiss parents, was one of the Sutter County has a land mass of first to recognize the Sacramento Valley for approximately 608 square miles, 88 percent its potential as an agricultural empire. His of which is prime farm or grazing lands. Just Hock Farm, established on the Feather River 3 percent of the County is urbanized. just south of present-day Yuba City, was the site of the valley’s first large agricultural State highways 99 and 20 are the main enterprise. traffic arteries through Sutter County, linking the County to Interstate 80 to the At the age of 31, Sutter left Europe on a south and Interstate 5 to the west. They French passport and traveled a circuitous intersect at Yuba City, 45 miles north of the route that took him from New York to St. state capital, along the Feather River at its Louis to Oregon to Hawaii and then to confluence with the Yuba River. Alaska. He sailed from Sitka, Alaska to Yerba Buena (San Francisco), arriving on The Sacramento River drainage system that July 1, 1839, at a time when California was has provided rich soils and vast amounts of part of Mexico. Sutter took Mexican water for agriculture and industry also poses citizenship on August 29, 1840 and between a physical threat to communities in Sutter 1841 and 1844 was granted by Mexican County. Sutter County’s battles against authorities some 145,000 acres of land in the flooding are historic. Sutter County is the Sacramento Valley, including a portion he site of the first regional flood control effort named New Helvetia that included parts of in California—Levee District 1, created by present day Sutter County. On some 600 the Board of Supervisors in 1868. When 19th acres along the Feather River in 1841, Sutter century hydraulic mining for gold in the established Hock Farm, the first non-Indian Sierra Nevada choked the rivers with debris settlement in the area. It became the site of a and made flooding episodes more frequent large grain, orchard, cattle and vineyards and more damaging, Sutter County farmers operation. spearheaded the formation of the Sacramento Valley Anti-Debris Association to force an end to hydraulic mining. Sutter County of Sutter 23 2012-13 Recommended Budget About Sutter County County is bisected by a state flood control Population project—the Sutter Bypass—which diverts high water flows from the Sacramento River According to the 2010 decennial US Census, and channels them south. There are Sutter County has a population of approximately 240 miles of earthen levees in approximately 94,554. More than two- Sutter County. Flood control is a constant thirds, 64,925, live in the City of Yuba City, priority for Sutter County government. In the County seat. Another 8,392 live in Live 2007, the County was instrumental in Oak. forming the Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency to provide regional flood control efforts in the 21st century. Government Sutter County is home to the Sutter Buttes, a Sutter County is a General Law County and cluster of mountain peaks that rise in sharp is organized in accordance with the relief to the flat landscape that dominates the California Government Code and the Sacramento Valley. Seen for miles from California Constitution, with five elected every direction, the Sutter Buttes are the members of the Board of Supervisors and remnants of a volcano dormant for over a elected positions of Sheriff-Coroner, District million years. Sometimes referred to as “The Attorney, Clerk-Recorder, Treasurer-Tax Smallest Mountain Range in the World,” Collector, Auditor-Controller, and Assessor. they were known as Histum Yani, (variously The Board of Supervisors establishes enacts translated as Middle Mountains of the local ordinances and establishes the policies Valley or Spirit Mountain) to the native under which the County operates. Based on Maidu who occupied Sutter County for these policy decisions, the County perhaps as long as 10,000 years. Administrative Officer manages the activities of the County’s departments. County Counsel provides legal counsel to Climate the Board of Supervisors and the Departments. Like all regions with Mediterranean climate, Sutter County experiences relatively mild winters. Summers in Sutter County can be Agriculture warmer than other regions of the Sacramento Valley that are closer to the In 2002, Sutter County had 1,391 farms on origin of the Delta breezes that provide 371,964 acres. The value of the 2010 farm some relief in the evenings. Sutter County production was $521 million, with rice, has, on average, approximately 21 inches of dried plums (prunes), walnuts, peaches, rainfall each year. While temperatures tomatoes and nursery products as the leading sometimes exceed 100 degrees and agricultural commodities. The County also infrequently fall below freezing, the average is an important producer of cattle and calves, high temperature in July is 95 degrees and melons, hay and alfalfa. Industries directly the average low temperature in January is 38 or indirectly tied to agriculture benefit from degrees. Snowfall is a rare occurrence, agriculture, which returned more than $2.12 although it is less rare on the peaks of the billion to the local economy in 2010. Sutter Buttes. County of Sutter 24 2012-13 Recommended Budget About Sutter County Natural Gas Production includes all of Sutter County and all of neighboring Yuba County. More than one- Sutter County had 429 operating natural gas third of Sutter County residents commute wells in 2011, an increase of 108 percent outside of the County for work. More than since 2005 and the largest number in a ten- one in four people employed in the Yuba county region. The assessed value of the gas City MSA work for the federal, state, or wells in 2011 was $138 million. local governments, including schools. The chart below represents the March, 2012 Employment Employment by Industry breakdown for the Yuba City MSA according to Employment Sutter County is part of the Yuba City Development Department. Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which Total All Employment 41,600 Government 10,800 Trade, Transportation & Utilities 8,000 Educational and Health Services 5,500 Retail Trade 5,500 Leisure and Hospitality 4,200 Farming 3,900 Professional and Business Services 2,700 Manufacturing 2,000 Natural Resources, Mining & Construction 1,700 Finance, Insurance and Real Estate 1,400 Information 400 Sutter County’s largest employers are Fremont-Rideout Health Group, Sutter County government, and Sunsweet Growers, respectively. County of Sutter 25 2012-13 Recommended Budget County of Sutter 26 2012-13 Recommended Budget.